It's really not clear on the National Wildlife Federation site what the minimum donation is to become a member ($30 is the lowest pre-filled option, but there is also an "other" option). I noticed that you can buy a gift membership for $15, so that may be the minimum for membership. Otherwise, you can have someone else buy your membership for $15.

evanm

Ancient Member

posted: Nov. 9, 2007 @ 5:00p

I called and confirmed that just joining the NWF makes one eligible.

Also, you can fund with a credit card, but they said it was up to the card issuer as to whether it was treated as a cash advance

mh83

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 9, 2007 @ 8:07p

Thanks lhendricks!

Looks like one can join the National Wildlife Federation for $15 here.

MilesHeighway

Broke Member

posted: Nov. 9, 2007 @ 8:16p

Awesome, make money AND save the environment! Only on FWF.

gwu1986

Senior Member - 1K

posted: Nov. 9, 2007 @ 9:08p

evanm said: I called and confirmed that just joining the NWF makes one eligible.

Also, you can fund with a credit card, but they said it was up to the card issuer as to whether it was treated as a cash advanceYou can fund with cc/debit card but only up to $1000. The minimum for this certificate is $10,000, so choose the ach option to fund. I tried with cc/debit and the application craps out when you try to change the $ amount at the end (for funding).

goldsheet

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 9, 2007 @ 10:31p

online application asks for term in days, so how many days is 18 months ?

mh83

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 9, 2007 @ 11:04p

goldsheet said: online application asks for term in days, so how many days is 18 months ?18 months = 540 days

Arfanbarkler

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 10, 2007 @ 12:32a

gwu1986 said: evanm said: I called and confirmed that just joining the NWF makes one eligible.

Also, you can fund with a credit card, but they said it was up to the card issuer as to whether it was treated as a cash advanceYou can fund with cc/debit card but only up to $1000. The minimum for this certificate is $10,000, so choose the ach option to fund. I tried with cc/debit and the application craps out when you try to change the $ amount at the end (for funding).

Although there are 547 days in the next 18 months, the terms are for 540 days.

Note this asterisk on the bottom of their rate page: *18-Month (540-day) Promotional Certificates will automatically renew to a two-year term upon maturity at the prevailing rate, unless you notify us otherwise.

So make sure to notify them you want to cash out at maturity or you'll be locked in for another 2 years at who knows what rate.

alng

New Member

posted: Nov. 10, 2007 @ 9:15a

Anyone knows what is the maximum deposit?

lhendricks92

Senior Member - 1K

posted: Nov. 10, 2007 @ 11:31a

there doesn't appear to be a maximum.

mh83

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 10, 2007 @ 11:57a

I opened the accounts online last night and spoke with a CSR this morning.

According to the CSR, there is no maximum deposit amount. They can send you forms to add PODs.

The number to call for the POD forms or to follow up on an application is 703.709.8900 ext.70035 or800.336.3384 ext.70035.

shinobi1

Happy Member

posted: Nov. 10, 2007 @ 1:52p

Arfanbarkler said: gwu1986 said: evanm said: I called and confirmed that just joining the NWF makes one eligible.

Also, you can fund with a credit card, but they said it was up to the card issuer as to whether it was treated as a cash advanceYou can fund with cc/debit card but only up to $1000. The minimum for this certificate is $10,000, so choose the ach option to fund. I tried with cc/debit and the application craps out when you try to change the $ amount at the end (for funding).

Although there are 547 days in the next 18 months, the terms are for 540 days.

Note this asterisk on the bottom of their rate page: *18-Month (540-day) Promotional Certificates will automatically renew to a two-year term upon maturity at the prevailing rate, unless you notify us otherwise.

So make sure to notify them you want to cash out at maturity or you'll be locked in for another 2 years at who knows what rate.

Agreed. But they are pretty transparent re the maturity date - provided one pays attention.

An equally large consideration is their very short grace period: It is only five (5) days!! This does not provide a lot of time. You need to be on this pronto when the CD matures.

ENTbb

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 10, 2007 @ 2:44p

I opened the CD at their branch yesterday. It required $5 min deposit on a saving account.The process took about 10 min. They will inform you 1/2 month prior the maturity. I selected an option to transfer fun to the saving account when the CD matures. After that i can doACH (pull) to my other bank.

glxpass

Senior Member - 6K

posted: Nov. 10, 2007 @ 5:47p

Looks like YMMV on National Wildlife Membership qualifying for eligibility in the CU. I've a feeling it depends on the CSR you talk to. From Banking Guy's post about this deal, which includes that and other information:

"Update 11/10/07: National Wildlife Federation (NWF) is listed as a qualifying organization. According to this FW post membership into NWF qualifies you for credit union membership. I just spoke with a credit union service rep and he stated that only employees and volunteers of NWF qualify. At the NWF website, there is a separate registration page for volunteers that's different than the membership page. Some additional details I received from the CSR include: 1) possible hard credit pull (CSR wasn't exactly sure), and 2) special CD cannot be opened online. It can be opened by mail or by phone. If opened by phone, funds must be available in a credit union account (such as the savings account) where it can be transfered into the CD."

glxpass said: Looks like YMMV on National Wildlife Membership qualifying for eligibility in the CU. I've a feeling it depends on the CSR you talk to. From Banking Guy's post about this deal, which includes that and other information:

"Update 11/10/07: National Wildlife Federation (NWF) is listed as a qualifying organization. According to this FW post membership into NWF qualifies you for credit union membership. I just spoke with a credit union service rep and he stated that only employees and volunteers of NWF qualify. At the NWF website, there is a separate registration page for volunteers that's different than the membership page. Some additional details I received from the CSR include: 1) possible hard credit pull (CSR wasn't exactly sure), and 2) special CD cannot be opened online. It can be opened by mail or by phone. If opened by phone, funds must be available in a credit union account (such as the savings account) where it can be transfered into the CD."

Onenote said: glxpass said: Looks like YMMV on National Wildlife Membership qualifying for eligibility in the CU. I've a feeling it depends on the CSR you talk to. From Banking Guy's post about this deal, which includes that and other information:

"Update 11/10/07: National Wildlife Federation (NWF) is listed as a qualifying organization. According to this FW post membership into NWF qualifies you for credit union membership. I just spoke with a credit union service rep and he stated that only employees and volunteers of NWF qualify. At the NWF website, there is a separate registration page for volunteers that's different than the membership page. Some additional details I received from the CSR include: 1) possible hard credit pull (CSR wasn't exactly sure), and 2) special CD cannot be opened online. It can be opened by mail or by phone. If opened by phone, funds must be available in a credit union account (such as the savings account) where it can be transfered into the CD."

Thanks. It will be interesting to learn more about how mh83 was able to apply online.

I agree. Also would like to learn how he/she qualified for entry into NWFCU (NWF membership or whatever).

Hope he/she posts.

mnsweeps

Senior Member - 10K

posted: Nov. 11, 2007 @ 8:51p

Tata Consultancy Services

Even offshore companies are eligible for membership . Looks like this CU has a global view of things

mnsweeps

Senior Member - 10K

posted: Nov. 11, 2007 @ 8:52p

Does anyone know if they do a hard pull while joining the CU?

sloppy1

Senior Member - 3K

posted: Nov. 11, 2007 @ 10:37p

mnsweeps said: Does anyone know if they do a hard pull while joining the CU?

Yes, they did on me.

taxmantoo

Ancient Member

posted: Nov. 11, 2007 @ 11:08p

If you are currently employed by one of these companies, you're invited to join NWFCU today!

If your company belongs to either the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce, Dulles Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Vienna-Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce, or the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC), you are eligible to join Northwest Federal Credit Union.

This seems to imply that it's for employees of the enrolled companies, or for members of the chambers of commerce listed above. OTOH, Northern Virginia Radio Control Club, Inc. is one of the companies, and I would be surprised if they have any employees.

glxpass

Senior Member - 6K

posted: Nov. 12, 2007 @ 2:34a

It looks like indeed NWF membership is sufficient for joining the CU. Here's a relevant comment from The Bank Deals NWFCU Post and Comments. The "Agreed" sentence is referring to a previous poster's experience that the memberhip was sufficient. "They" refers to NWFCU.

"Agreed. But apparently they were having trouble disseminating that information. I know there was a meeting Friday afternoon the subject of which was this very issue. When I called on Wednesday, the rep who took my call fortunately did not know if NWF membership was enough to qualify. She sought an answer from a supervisor. It was "yes". That's how I was able to get gain entry. I'm sure it's a good CU. But as Banking Guy pointed out, it is large. There are MANY reps and they work different hours. Thus, distribution of information amongst the reps is apparently not easy for them."

Onenote said: bedrocked said: so has anyone successfully signed up and funded a CD?

Looks like the only people who have opened one did so by calling.

I just called and the CU and call center are closed today (11/12/07).Opened and funded by ach online 11/7/2007. Funds pulled from sbot 11/9/2007. (FWIW I qualified as retiree of eligible member company, not contributor to NWF.) Their Herndon Virginia location is just down the street from me.

shinobi1

Happy Member

posted: Nov. 13, 2007 @ 7:07a

calisoldier83 said: How much do you guys recommend putting in a CD of the money that is currentely sitting in a high interest savings account? What point is the CD FDIC insured?

It's a tough question because the correct answer depends to such a great extent on your personal circumstances, which we do not know.

This CD has a term short enough to be fairly safe from incipient inflation. You should leave enough in your savings for current needs and for needs you can foresee in the next 540 days. This is the best CD out there right now, from the standpoint of return and term, so you should jump on it if you believe a CD is right for you, i.e., if you have money you can lock up for 540 days. Be careful and thoughtful, though. If you have to break this CD you will be charged up to six months' interest, as a penalty for early withdrawal.

This CD, because it is with a credit union, is insured by the NCUA and not the FDIC. Still, the insurance has the backing of the federal government, as is the case with the FDIC. If you go in alone you will have insurance up to $100,000.00.

I hope this is helpful, at least a little bit. Good luck to you and thank you.

ENTbb

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 13, 2007 @ 9:15a

bedrocked said: so has anyone successfully signed up and funded a CD?

Opened and funded by checks on 11/09 at the branch office.

I only filled out my current address and signed on the mem app.The CSR made a copy of my company ID bag and driver license. I told him how much i want to put in the CD and gave him thechecks. He typed everything in the computer and printed out forme the copies. Done.

Aurianne

Happy Member

posted: Nov. 13, 2007 @ 2:32p

Membership in the National Wildlife Federation DID meet the membership requirements for the credit union. I was able to open a share account as well as open the 18 month certificate over the phone this morning and Funded both via an ACH.

Furthermore, if you are an employee or retiree of (almost) any federal agency ( Treasury Dept, FBI, Secret Service, US Department of Defense etc) you're eligible.

If I had known that I'd have saved $15 & not joined the NWF, but what the heck, I like animals anyway.

Their new accounts rep was very friendly & helpful, so I'm well satisfied with them so far!

mh83

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 14, 2007 @ 5:05a

To answer the questions posed to me on this thread:

- Yes, I applied for membership to NWFCU and the promo CD completely online last Friday night.- I listed membership in the National Wildlife Federation for qualification to the CU - screenshot. (click on the image to enlarge).- I funded both accounts by ACH.- I called NWFCU Saturday morning and was told my accounts were opened but I would not have online access until after the holiday – screenshot.

I applied for the accounts based solely on the information given on NWFCU’s website. According to the website, and pointed out by OP, “If you are an employee or member of any of the more than 400 Member Companies… you are eligible to join NWFCU”. Since the National Wildlife Federation did not have a ‘staff only’ designation next to it like some of the other Member Companies, I assumed membership in NWF alone would meet the criteria for eligibility to the credit union. I did call NWFCU the following morning and the CSR confirmed that that indeed was the case.

I didn’t risk opening the CD for more than 100K because at the time of my application, I didn’t know if there was a maximum deposit limit. I found out the next morning that there were no limits but the CSR indicated that since my account was already opened, I couldn’t add any additional amounts to it. I then inquired about opening a POD account to maximize NCUA coverage. She wasn't sure how to do this so I didn’t pursue the matter with her. She did offer to send me the POD forms. I've subsequently learned that the forms can also be downloaded from the website.

This CD is obviously a fantastic deal given the current rate environment. Thanks again lhendricks92 for posting and calling attention to the promo!

clampuke

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 14, 2007 @ 1:33p

Thanks mh83 for that detailed report.

If you wanted to deposit more money, couldn't you open up a second CD? Or was that not allowed?

goldsheet

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 14, 2007 @ 2:20p

Thanks to mh83 for letting us know the application went smoothly,and for posting the screenshots. I went ahead and opened a CD.Thank to lhendricks92 for posting this deal.

u2godu2

Member

posted: Nov. 14, 2007 @ 10:36p

Excellent Post, questions from a newbie:

What's a POD account? I have more than 100K to out into an account, how would you recommend I deposit this?

Thanks!

mh83 said: To answer the questions posed to me on this thread:

- Yes, I applied for membership to NWFCU and the promo CD completely online last Friday night.- I listed membership in the National Wildlife Federation for qualification to the CU - screenshot. (click on the image to enlarge).- I funded both accounts by ACH.- I called NWFCU Saturday morning and was told my accounts were opened but I would not have online access until after the holiday – screenshot.

I applied for the accounts based solely on the information given on NWFCU’s website. According to the website, and pointed out by OP, “If you are an employee or member of any of the more than 400 Member Companies… you are eligible to join NWFCU”. Since the National Wildlife Federation did not have a ‘staff only’ designation next to it like some of the other Member Companies, I assumed membership in NWF alone would meet the criteria for eligibility to the credit union. I did call NWFCU the following morning and the CSR confirmed that that indeed was the case.

I didn’t risk opening the CD for more than 100K because at the time of my application, I didn’t know if there was a maximum deposit limit. I found out the next morning that there were no limits but the CSR indicated that since my account was already opened, I couldn’t add any additional amounts to it. I then inquired about opening a POD account to maximize NCUA coverage. She wasn't sure how to do this so I didn’t pursue the matter with her. She did offer to send me the POD forms. I've subsequently learned that the forms can also be downloaded from the website.

This CD is obviously a fantastic deal given the current rate environment. Thanks again lhendricks92 for posting and calling attention to the promo!

Skipping 56 Messages...

onedollarinmywallet

Senior Member

posted: Nov. 30, 2007 @ 10:56a

Looks like the 18 month 6.00% APY CD is no longer available.

The offer no longer shows up on their website or on their CD rates page.

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